Chiropractic cushion for use in combination with a chiropractic support

ABSTRACT

A chiropractic head cushion. The head cushion is used in combination with a chiropractic table having a frame and having a pair of oppositely spaced cushions affixed to the frame. The oppositely spaced cushions define a channel therebetween. The head cushion comprises a top side, a bottom side, and sidewalls connecting the top side and bottom side. The bottom side has a protrusion that extends outwardly from the bottom side wherein the protrusion is removably insertable within the channel and rests upon the pair of oppositely spaced cushions such that when the patient rests upon the cushioned surface the removable head cushion uniformly supports the patient&#39;s head across the channel.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND

Numerous types of patient supports, such as tables, exist to enable thepracticing chiropractor or other health professional to conductexaminations, adjustments, applications and treatments beneficial to thepatient. During treatment, a patient, lying freely on the table, orstrapped thereto, has the musculo-skeletal system manipulated asrequired for a particular procedure.

In the treatment of the patient, the health professional often exertsconsiderable pressure and leverage on the various portions of thepatient's anatomy. This requires that the patient be placed in aposition which is comfortable to the patient and which is convenient tothe health professional in order that the health professional appliesthe proper, pressures.

A typical patient position requires that the patient lie on the frontside or stomach and place the forehead on a headpiece section of thetable. The headpiece section includes a support for the patient to restthe forehead. Since the patient lies facedown, the support typicallyconsists of a pair of cushions affixed to the headpiece sectionseparated from each other so the patient's eyes, nose and mouth aresuspended within the space to allow for comfortable breathing by thepatient. Another typical patient position requires that the patient lieon the backside or lumbar region and place the back of the head on thepair of spaced cushions of the headpiece section. For patient comfort,the health professional often places a conventional pillow to span thegap between the spaced apart cushions.

These spaced apart cushions, however, typically comprise a somewhatrigid material to provide resistant force as the health professionalapplies pressure to the patient. The forehead and in particular the backof the patient's head tends to press down within the conventional pillowand tends to slip within the space defined by the spaced apart cushionsleading to discomfort for the patient and leading to misappliedtreatment by the health professional. The suspended conventional pillowalso tends to slip off the spaced apart cushions and to fall on thefloor. Accordingly, the health professional requires a stabilized headportion of the support table to provide patient comfort while alsoproviding the proper patient alignment for the health professional.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure relates to a head cushion, and in particular, toa head cushion used by a patient lying on a support such as achiropractic table.

The chiropractic table comprises a frame having a front portion, a rearportion, a top portion, a bottom portion and legs supporting the bottomportion. A cushioned surface secures to the top portion of the frame,wherein the cushioned surface is adapted for the patient to restcushioned thereon. The cushioned surface has a pair of oppositely spacedcushions affixed to the front portion, wherein the oppositely spacedcushions define a channel therebetween. The head cushion of the presentdisclosure removably inserts within the channel and rests upon the pairof oppositely spaced cushions such that when the patient rests upon thecushioned surface the removable head cushion uniformly supports thepatient's head across the channel.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings which form part of the specification:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a head cushion constructed inaccordance with and embodying the present disclosure illustrating aprotrusion of the cushion;

FIG. 2 is a back perspective view of a head cushion constructed inaccordance with and embodying the present disclosure illustrating aprotrusion of the cushion;

FIG. 3 is another perspective view of the head cushion of FIG. 1 shownseparated from a support table;

FIG. 4 is a another perspective view of the cushion of FIG. 2 insertedwithin and resting upon support cushions of the support table; and

FIG. 5 illustrates the head cushion of the present disclosure storedunderneath the support table.

Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughoutthe several figures of the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The following detailed description illustrates the disclosure by way ofexample and not by way of limitation. The description clearly enablesone skilled in the art to make and use the disclosure, describes severalembodiments, adaptations, variations, alternatives, and uses of thedisclosure, including what is presently believed to be the best mode ofcarrying out the invention.

Referring to the drawings, a head cushion of the present disclosure isgenerally shown as 10 (FIGS. 1 and 2). The head cushion removablyinserts within a support 12 (FIG. 3). The support 10 can be employed inconnection with any patient support, such as but not limited to, a tableor chair that is used for the examination, or treatment or support of ahuman patient receiving treatment. The support 10 is optimally shown inthe form of a chiropractic table (FIG. 2). The chiropractic table 10includes separate sections, such as a headpiece or thoracic, lumbar,pelvic or other section so that the health professional can conduct thedesired treatment upon a given part of the patient's body.

The chiropractic table 12 is typically padded, adjustable andarticulated so that a patient, lying freely on the chiropractic table12, or strapped thereto, can have the musculo-skeletal systemmanipulated as required for a particular procedure by the healthprofessional. Each of the sections optimally adjusts vertically andlongitudinally so as to accommodate the particular needs of the patientand the particular size of the patient.

As shown in FIG. 3, the chiropractic table 12 comprises a frame 14having a front portion 16, a rear portion 18, a top portion 20 and abottom portion 22. Legs 24 support and suspend the frame 14 off theground 26. For comfort, the chiropractic table 12 further comprises acushioned surface 28 secure to the top portion 20 of the frame 14. Thecushion surface 28 is adapted for the patient to rest cushioned thereon.In an embodiment, the cushion surface 28 is segmented to match andpreferably cover the segmented sections of the chiropractic table 12.

Positioned at the front portion 16 of the frame 14, the cushionedsurface 28 has a pair of oppositely spaced cushions 30 affixed to a headsection 32 of the front portion 16. The spaced apart cushions 30 mayremovably affix to the head section 32 to allow a variety of cushionshaving different shapes, sizes and material compositions. The oppositelyspaced cushions 30 define a channel 34 there between. The channel 34exposes a least a portion of the head section 32. The pair of oppositelyspaced cushions 30 and the resultant channel 34 optimally extend alongsubstantially the length of the head section 32. In an embodiment, thespaced apart cushions 30 have a height range of about 0.25 inches toabout six inches. Consequently, the channel 34 has a height range ofabout 0.25 inches to about six inches. Further, in an embodiment, thechannel 34 has a width range from about 0.25 inches to about six inches.

Returning to FIGS. 1 and 2 and referring to FIG. 3, the head cushion 10removably inserts within the channel 34. In this position, the headcushion 10 rests upon the pair of oppositely spaced cushions 30. Thehead cushion 10 comprises top side 36, a bottom side 38, and side walls40 connecting the top side 36 and the bottom side 38. The top side 36optimally has a length of about 11 inches to about 12 inches and has awidth of about 11 inches to about 12 inches. The side walls 40 optimallyhave a length of about 11 inches to about 12 inches and have a height ofabout 2 inches to about 3 inches.

The head cushion 10 includes a protrusion 42 extending outwardly fromthe bottom side 38. The protrusion 42 has a first end 44, a second end46, and a body 48 disposed there between forming a T-shaped cushion. Thebody 48 is sized and shaped to insert within the channel 34 defined bythe pair of oppositely spaced cushions 30. Preferably the body 48 issized and shaped to slidably insert within the channel 34. The body 48optimally has a length of about 11 inches to about 12 inches and has awidth of about 2 inches to about 3 inches. As shown, the body 48 has anequal length as the top side 36 of the head cushion 10.

When the protrusion 42 is removably inserted within the channel 34, thebottom sides 38 of the head cushion 10 contacts and rests upon the pairof oppositely spaced cushions 30. A fastener, such as a hook and loopfastener (not shown) may removably attach the bottom sides 38 of thehead cushion 10 to the tops of the pair of oppositely spaced cushions30. In this position, the protrusion 42 contacts the head section 32when the protrusion 42 inserts within the channel 34. Although theprotrusion 42 slidably inserts within the channel 34, the protrusion 42may slideably move within the channel 34. The bottom side 38 covers thepair of oppositely spaced cushions 30,when the protrusion 42 insertswithin the channel 34 such that when the patient rests upon thecushioned surface 28, the removable head cushion 10 uniformly supportsthe patients head across the channel 34. In particular, the head cushion10 distributes the weight of the rested patient's head to the pair ofoppositely space cushions 30 and to the head section 32 of the frame 14.

During treatment of the patient, the health professional removes theT-shaped head cushion 10 from storage and removably inserts the headcushion 10 in the channel 34 defined by the pair of oppositely spacedcushions 30. While inserting the head cushion 10 within the channel 34,the health professional positions the bottom sides 38 over the top ofthe oppositely spaced cushions 30. In this position, the bottom sides 38contact and rest upon the pair of oppositely spaced cushions 30.Additionally, in this position, the protrusion slidably inserts orslides within the channel 34 and contacts the head section 32 of thefront portion 16 of the frame 14.

Upon properly positing the head cushion 10, the health professionaldirects the patient to lie on chiropractic table 12 in a prone positionsuch that the patient's head rests upon the T-shaped head cushion 10wherein the T-shaped head cushion 10 uniformly supports the patient'shead across the channel 34. Since the T-shaped head cushion 10 coversthe pair of oppositely spaced cushions 30 when the protrusion 42 insertswithin the channel 34 such that the T-shaped head cushion 10 distributesthe weight of the rested patient's head to the pair of oppositely spacedcushions 30 and to the protrusion 42.

During treatment, the patient may rest in the prone (face up) positionupon the cushioned surface 28. The patient may rest in the prone (facedown) position upon the cushioned surface 28. This position provides thehealth professional access to the spinal regions. After treatment, thehealth professional lifts the patient's head off of the T-shaped headcushion 10, removes the T-shaped head cushion 10 and stores the T-shapedhead cushion 10 underneath the chiropractic table.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of thedisclosure are achieved and other advantageous results are obtained. Asvarious changes could be made in the above constructions withoutdeparting from the scope of the disclosure, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

Moreover, the use of the terms “upper” and “lower” or “top” or “bottom”or “forward/front” or “rear” and variations of these terms is made forconvenience, but does not require any particular orientation of thecomponents.

1. A support table for a human patient receiving treatment, comprising:a frame having a front portion, a rear portion, a top portion, a bottomportion and legs supporting the bottom portion; a cushioned surfacesecured to the top portion of the frame and adapted for the patient torest cushioned thereon, the cushioned surface having a pair ofoppositely spaced cushions affixed to the front portion, the oppositelyspaced cushions defining a channel therebetween; and a head cushionremovably insertable within the channel and resting upon the pair ofoppositely spaced cushions such that when the patient rests upon thecushioned surface the removable head cushion uniformly supports thepatient's head across the channel.
 3. The support table of claim 1wherein the head cushion includes a protrusion that is sized and shapedto insert within the channel defined by the pair of oppositely spacedcushions.
 2. The support table of claim 2 wherein the head cushioncomprises a top side, a bottom side, and sidewalls connecting the topside and bottom side, the bottom side having a protrusion that extendsoutwardly from the bottom side.
 4. The support table of claim 3 whereinthe protrusion has a first end, a second end and a body disposedtherebetween, the body being sized and shaped to pressureably insertwithin the channel.
 5. The support table of claim 3 wherein the bottomside contacts and rests upon the pair of oppositely spaced cushions whenthe protrusion inserts within the channel.
 6. The support table of claim3 wherein the bottom sides cover the pair of oppositely spaced cushionswhen the protrusion inserts within the channel such that the headcushion distributes the weight of the rested patient's head to the pairof oppositely spaced cushions.
 7. The support table of claim 1 wherienthe protrusion contacts the head section when the protrusion insertswithin the channel.
 8. The support table of claim 3 wherein theprotrusion is slidably movable within the channel.
 9. The support tableof claim 1 wherein the head cushion is T-shaped.
 10. The support tableof claim 1 wherein the frame is a chiropractic table.
 11. A head cushionused in combination with a chiropractic table having a frame and havinga pair of oppositely spaced cushions affixed to the frame, theoppositely spaced cushions defining a channel therebetween, the headcushion comprising: a top side, a bottom side, and sidewalls connectingthe top side and bottom side, the bottom side having a protrusion thatextends outwardly from the bottom side wherein the protrusion isremovably insertable within the channel and rests upon the pair ofoppositely spaced cushions such that when the patient rests upon thecushioned surface the removable head cushion uniformly supports thepatient's head across the channel.
 12. The head cushion of claim 11wherein the protrusion has a first end, a second end and a body disposedtherebetween, the body being sized and shaped to slidably insert withinthe channel.
 13. The head cushion of claim 11 wherein the bottom sidecontacts and rests upon the pair of oppositely spaced cushions when theprotrusion inserts within the channel.
 14. The head cushion of claim 11wherein the protrusion contacts the frame when the protrusion insertswithin the channel.
 15. The head cushion of claim 14 wherein the bottomsides cover the pair of oppositely spaced cushions when the protrusioninserts within the channel such that the head cushion distributes theweight of the rested patient's head to the pair of oppositely spacedcushions and to the protrusion.
 16. A method of supporting a patient ona chiropractic table, the method comprising: defining a channel betweena pair of oppositely spaced cushions that are affixed to a front portionof the chiropractic table; inserting a T-shaped head cushion within thechannel; positioning the T-shaped cushion over the pair of oppositelyspaced cushions; and lying the patient on the chiropractic table in aprone position such that the patient's head rests upon the T-shapedcushion wherein the T-shaped head cushion uniformly supports thepatient's head across the channel.
 17. The method of claim 16 whereininserting the T-shaped cushion within the channel comprises slidablysliding a protrusion of the T-shaped cushion within the channel.
 18. Themethod of claim 17 further comprising contacting the protrusion with thefront portion and contacting the protrusion with the pair of oppositelyspaced cushion.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein the T-shaped cushioncovers the pair of oppositely spaced cushions when the protrusioninserts within the channel such that the T-shaped cushion distributesthe weight of the rested patient's head to the pair of oppositely spacedcushions and to the protrusion.
 20. The method of claim 16 lifting thepatient's head off of the T-shaped cushion and storing the T-shapedcushion underneath the chiropractic table.